Shands at Main opens to serve east Gainesville

A ceremony is held for the opening of UF & Shands Family Medicine at Main, a primary care practice that will serve adult and pediatric patients at 1707 N. Main Street in Gainesville, Fla., Wednesday, June 27, 2012.

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"This is UF and Shands working to raise the quality of life in east Gainesville," said Dr. David Guzick, UF&Shands president. "This represents an $8.2 million investment … in east Gainesville, and every penny of that will be well worth it in terms of medical care."

At a ceremony Wednesday attended by Shands and community leaders, the clinic at 1707 N. Main St. opened in its two-story, 24,000-square-foot home.

The clinic will offer health care for kids and adults. It has 25 exam rooms, two procedure rooms and space for groups and counseling.

The concept of the clinic was conceived several years ago when Shands closed Shands at AGH, which for decades had been a community hospital that served many in east Gainesville.

While it was conceived after Shands closed AGH, the Main Street clinic also will replace a Shands family practice clinic on Southwest Fourth Avenue, which is closing.

Officials said about 25,000 patients are expected to use the clinic its first year and 36,000 yearly after that. Staff will include 10 College of Medicine doctors, 28 residents, a College of Pharmacy faculty member, a social worker and a nurse-midwife. They will provide adult and pediatric comprehensive care, orthopedics and sports medicine, dermatology, podiatry, OB/GYN services, prenatal care and ultrasounds, social services, lab tests, stress tests and X-rays.

The facility's hours will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Walk-in patients will be seen, but appointments are encouraged.

Gainesville City Commissioner Yvonne Hinson-Rawls said at Wednesday's ceremony that the clinic is especially needed after the closure of AGH in late 2009. AGH was closed by Shands because of financial losses.

"This facility has its genesis in the ashes of the old AGH that was torn down much to the residents' dismay. All of my grandparents died at AGH, and many generations of the community were born at AGH," Rawls said. "We are having trouble disconnecting from the old AGH, but now, out of ashes of that, this new facility rises impressively."

<p>The new, $8.2 million UF&Shands Family Medicine at Main medical facility opened Wednesday, giving residents an option for primary care and many other services especially focused on east Gainesville.</p><p>"This is UF and Shands working to raise the quality of life in east Gainesville," said Dr. David Guzick, UF&Shands president. "This represents an $8.2 million investment … in east Gainesville, and every penny of that will be well worth it in terms of medical care."</p><p>At a ceremony Wednesday attended by Shands and community leaders, the clinic at 1707 N. Main St. opened in its two-story, 24,000-square-foot home.</p><p>The clinic will offer health care for kids and adults. It has 25 exam rooms, two procedure rooms and space for groups and counseling.</p><p>The concept of the clinic was conceived several years ago when Shands closed Shands at AGH, which for decades had been a community hospital that served many in east Gainesville.</p><p>While it was conceived after Shands closed AGH, the Main Street clinic also will replace a Shands family practice clinic on Southwest Fourth Avenue, which is closing.</p><p>Officials said about 25,000 patients are expected to use the clinic its first year and 36,000 yearly after that. Staff will include 10 College of Medicine doctors, 28 residents, a College of Pharmacy faculty member, a social worker and a nurse-midwife. They will provide adult and pediatric comprehensive care, orthopedics and sports medicine, dermatology, podiatry, OB/GYN services, prenatal care and ultrasounds, social services, lab tests, stress tests and X-rays.</p><p>The facility's hours will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Walk-in patients will be seen, but appointments are encouraged.</p><p>Gainesville City Commissioner Yvonne Hinson-Rawls said at Wednesday's ceremony that the clinic is especially needed after the closure of AGH in late 2009. AGH was closed by Shands because of financial losses.</p><p>"This facility has its genesis in the ashes of the old AGH that was torn down much to the residents' dismay. All of my grandparents died at AGH, and many generations of the community were born at AGH," Rawls said. "We are having trouble disconnecting from the old AGH, but now, out of ashes of that, this new facility rises impressively."</p>